Bespelled
by xJoby
Summary: The guild leaders have always been unreachable people, at least Caitlyn had thought..  The Elementor Guild leader has always stood above the crowd, and it saddened him...  "Why me?" she asked. "I.. don't think I even know.." he said with a smile. romance
1. Prologue

... .:**prologue**:...

In Saint Morning, the capital of the large island, things had been busy lately. More and more people were moving to the island, and the city had been forced to grow. Some didn't mind, but for some people it was a change that wasn't welcome.  
In the last few years people had been changing some other things as well. People of the same class started to group together to form strong guilds that stood above the others, the so-called 'Elite Guilds'. There was the Knight guild, the Blade guild, the Ranger guild, the Jester guild, the Ringmaster guild.. Each for each of the classes. It became ones biggest goal to join one of these guilds. And each of these guilds had a leader, a strong person that sometimes was feared. Few people knew these people personally, and even fewer wanted to stay close to them.

Why, people never really thought about.

In this particular story, I want to focus on an Elementor named Nathan, the leader of the Elementor Guild. He has been the leader for a long time, and his story is one that is important in Roika. Also, I want to tell you the story of Caitlyn, a young Assist. She's a hard worker, so works hard to reach her goal, to join the Ringmaster Guild one day. She lives with some other first class people in a large mansion in Pumpkin village.


	2. Lots of introductions, and lots of hats!

**A/N : **Thanks for taking the time to read this work of mine! It's been on the official flyff site for quite a while, but since I'm becoming more active here, I decided to post it here as well.

As of now, this story counts 50 pages, so this is just the tip of the iceberg.

I hope you enjoy, and please review if you have comments!

Disclaimer : I don't own FlyFF ;)

... .:**chapter 1**:...

Caitlyn sighed when she felt an aching pain in her wrist. For today, she would have to stop her practicing. She hung her stick on a hook on her belt, and turned to a young Mercenary, who was chopping away at a Mr. Pumpkin.  
"Colin." she called out to him, wanting to tell him that she would be stopping for a while. He barely noticed that she wasn't healing him, before the pumpkin smacked him in the face and he staggered back, falling on his behind. The pumpkin turned and left him there. Insulted, Colin stood up again.  
"COME BACK HERE, YOU MONSTER! I'M GOING TO SLAY YOU!" he yelled, his face red of anger. His red hair had grass in it when he took off to go after it.  
"COLIN!" Caitlyn yelled, way louder this time. She felt her voice crack and sighed. Why did she even have to call him that loud? He wouldn't hear her anyway, knowing him. She laughed sheepishly when one of her other friends turned up. The dark-haired magician smiled at her.  
"What are you yelling about?" he asked in a melodious voice. His long black hair sat on his shoulder in a braid. His black suit and top hat made him look like like a performer. Caitlyn smiled slightly. He looked at her with calm eyes.  
"It's nothing, Sam. Colin refuses to hear anything right now, that's the only thing." she said and sighed, running her hand through her dark blond hair. She rubbed her dark blue eyes

.  
"He's hyperactive again, I think." Samuel said, smiling. Caitlyn stared at him.  
"Well, I guess. Things like this make me forget what I planned to say in the first place!" she yelled, groaning in frustration.  
"I'm turning in for the day, I hurt my wrist while healing him." she said, rolling her eyes. Samuel gave her a serious look before carefully taking her hand and looking at her wrist.  
"It doesn't look too bad, just don't use it for a bit, you Assists heal yourself quickly." he said, grinning. His light gray eyes looked into hers for a second and she smiled back.  
"Yeah, thanks." she said, walking over to one of the trees to grab her board. She strapped her dark blue cape around her shoulders and neck and put it on. The motors started up soundlessly, and the board hovered in the sky, waiting for her to step onto it. She smirked, and stepped onto the board.

"See you at home then, Sam. Say bye to the rest for me!" she yelled, and then took off. Fresh air blew into her face, and she breathed in deeply. She loved everything on this island, the skies, the land, the people and the cities. It was beautiful. For today she planned to head to the capital to get some groceries. It seemed like she was the only one who really thought of going. She lost herself in thought while soaring through the air at heights other people didn't really feel comfortable with. Before she knew it, she could smell the city smells in the air up above, and she stopped going ahead and started to fly lower. She flew past the round arena, that was deserted since there was a new one nearby. Sighing, she circled around it and landed behind the wall. She put her board in a place where it couldn't really be seen, and then walked around, through the gate. She pulled her hair out of the ponytail, and brushed grass off of her clothes. Then she took a deep breath and headed into the city.

The noise was overwhelming for some people, but she was used to it. People were every, swarmed around stalls and shops, fitting new armor and chatting in general. Guilds stood with each other, class guilds and friend guilds alike. People who lived here were talking to people outside of their door, in the sun. It was a great day today. Caitlyn sighed when she headed to a little house a bit more into the city.  
"How are you today?" Karin asked, her chubby face lighting up when she saw her coming. Caitlyn smiled brightly. "I'm fine, Karin! It's a nice day today. How are you doing?"  
"It's busier than normal today! I think one of the Guild Leaders is heading here, otherwise it would be quieter... But still, this is great for business." she said,smiling. Caitlyn blinked.

"A guild leader? Do they ever come to the cities?" she asked sheepishly. To her, the Leaders seemed like strong people who wouldn't want to be seen close to the others. And like amazing people, who would blind the normal people if they came too close. She had seen them shining brightly, brighter than she had ever seen before.  
"Maybe you'll even get to see them... But first things first, do you want to buy something?" the blond lady said, seeing the girl lost in thought. Caitlyn smiled.  
"Yeah. Could I have some of these..."

With a full backpack, Caitlyn headed to the Armor Shop. She had leveled up a few times, and thought that it could be a nice thing to get some new clothes. She headed inside, smiling at the saleslady inside. People rarely came inside the shop, but she thought that the most interesting things were in here. She headed into a walk-in closet, and settled with a long blouse with open shoulders, and a dark blue pair of shorts with a new belt and a beret. She looked in the mirror, turning to see the bow in the back.  
"Mm... If people would bother, they could see all the nice things in here..." she mumbled, smiling when thinking that she was one of the few who could buy these things. Suddenly she heard a crashing sound from the closet next to her. It was silent immediately. She blinked, and then slowly pulled on a pair of brown boots and headed to the source of the sound.  
It was a young man, and he was buried in a pile of hats. Smiling sheepishly, he struggled to get out of it. Caitlyn laughed out loud, even though she knew it was rude.

"I'm sorry, sir. It just looked..." she started, crouching down to push the hats off of him. He looked at her and chuckled.  
"Well, yes, I assume that it looks strange for an adult to be buried in hats." he said, pulling his arm out. He gestured upwards and all the hats started to glow faintly. Then they all flew back onto their original spots. The hat in Caitlyn's hands flew away as well. She stared at her empty hands speechlessly.  
"Eh..." she started. "That's amazing..." she continued. The magic-user stood up, brushing off his clothes. She noticed how he looked now, and forced herself not to stare.  
He was absolutely gorgeous. He had a gray turtleneck on, and a pair of black pants and shoes. His hair was black, and reached until about an inch above his shoulders. His bangs hid his right eye. His skin was a caramel-brown. His eyes were gray, but she swore she could see more colors. Now, it may seem like she took minutes to observe him, but she took a few seconds. Then she smiled shyly.

"Um... Sir..." she started, wondering what she could ask him. He smiled.  
"No sir. Call me Nathan." he said simply. Caitlyn blinked.  
"Um.. So your name is Nathan? May I ask what class you are?" she asked quietly. He leaned a bit closer to hear her.  
"I'm an Elementor." he said simply.  
"Wow... I've never met an Elementor before." she said. 'Oh, that sounded lame' she thought.  
He just smiled again. "We're not all that special as you think... What's your name?"  
"Caitlyn, I'm an Assist." she said, feeling a blush rise on her face when he looked into her eyes.  
"Caitlyn.." he mused, looking past her. His gray eyes stared into hers again. They changed color to a light blue. "That's a nice name." he said.  
The next moment she heard a lot of noise and talking come her way. And suddenly she found quite some people talking into her face.  
"I heard the Elementor guild Leader was here!" a girl yelled, looking past her. She whirled around. Nathan was gone. She sighed. The Guild Leader huh... No wonder he had been that amazing. It was too bad that she couldn't talk to him a bit longer though.  
"I have no idea..." Caitlyn said, walking over to the counter to buy the clothes she had fitted.  
The lady smiled at her when she left in her new outfit. Outside, she absentmindedly braided her hair. She couldn't stop thinking about that conversation just then. It suddenly felt unreal, knowing that she has spoken to the Leader himself.

"It's the Guild Leaders!" someone nearby yelled. Then she noticed a few people standing at the front of the Church. Carefully, she came closer, her feeling of anticipation rising. The Mayor, a lady in a top hat and green hair, greeted the individuals.  
"Let us go to the conference hall." she said. Caitlyn studied them. She searched for Nathan. And found him quickly. He was standing at the left of the group, a bit apart from the others. He looked like he was thinking about something hard, and his arms were folded over each other. He was wearing a black tuxedo. And it glowed so fiercely that she had to shield her eyes. She suddenly felt like laughing though, because she had imagined the leaders to shine like that. The next moment he looked straight into her eyes and smiled. And people started to turn to her. She cursed inwardly. She smiled at him and then fled from the scene, dashing through the crowd and jumping over the wall. She knew that people had noticed. But she was afraid to be noticed like this.  
'I hope I didn't insult him..' she thought when she was flying back to Pumpkin Town. And when she dashed into the house, she crashed straight into Colin.

"Caitlyn? What's up?" he asked, blinking. Caitlin smiled awkwardly.  
"Hey. I was worried that .. I would be late." she said, hesitating with her words. Colin raised his eyebrows. Samuel was sitting at the table. A brown-haired girl with green eyes was sitting next to him.  
"Hey, have you heard about the Guild Leaders conferencing in town today?" she asked, smiling. She put her mug of tea down and began to pour another one for the nervous Assist. Caitlin took off her shoes and big beret and hung them on the hook next to the wooden door. She dropped herself in a soft chair next to Colin.  
"Yes." she said and groaned.  
"Wha's wrong?" Colin asked, eying her suspiciously. Caitlyn avoided his gaze.  
"I saw them." she said. Anya, the green-eyed girl, gasped. "What?"  
"Yes, and they're just as amazing as I thought they would be..." she mumbled, more in herself now. Anya smiled gently, and pushed the tea into her hands.

"Relax. You're home now. It was chaotic in town, I assume?" she asked, cocking her head.  
"Very. I got groceries though." she said, sipping the tea and smiling when the warm liquid made her throat feel better. "What do you want to make for dinner, Anya?" she asked sheepishly. Anya smiled brightly.  
"What about some pasta, it's energizing and filling, since we all worked very hard today." she said, earning a lot of cheers from the rest of the room. Caitlyn already felt like sleeping. The sun had set just minutes ago, because the sky was turning a dark blue. Yawning, she stood up. Running a hand through her brown hair, she walked to the stairway.  
"Do you need my help for anything?" she asked, smiling.  
Anya grinned. "I'll have the boys help me." she said. Caitlyn saw the boys pale next to her and laughed. "Okay then." she said, heading upstairs. She headed out to the balcony.

Now, you should know that they didn't build a new house in Pumpkin Village. This was an old house. She stepped out onto the dark wood and smirked when she heard it creak. It was like it tried to frighten her. The Mr. Pumpkins here weren't aggressive, though. They tolerated them.  
It was strange how each of the people in this house felt like lost children. At one point, each of them had ran from their houses to find freedom. And they found it here. There were stronger people living here, people who fought in Darkon already. But they always took longer to come back. They were like parents to them, somehow. You had Mum & Dad, actually named Rosalie and Benjamin, who were Ringmaster and Billposter respectively. They were the cutest couple they could imagine, and the most caring people she had ever met.

Dreaming off, she yawned. Suddenly she had the feeling that she was being watched. She turned sharply to her left, and she stopped breathing for a second when she saw someone sitting casually on the edge of the balcony.  
"Hi." Nathan said, a huge grin on his face. Caitlyn stared at him. And blinked.  
"Wha-" she started, before he jumped off the edge, and onto the balcony. He walked over to her, still smirking, his hands in his pockets. His dark hair blew out of his face when the wind rushed through the town.  
"Um.. What are you doing.. here?" she asked, trying to not make it sound mean. He kept smiling. "I came to look for you." he said simply. Caitlyn blushed at this, for a reason she wasn't quite aware of. He walked over and observed her face.  
"Aren't you very busy as a guild leader?" she blurted out suddenly. He frowned, and thought.  
"How do you mean?" he asked her, cocking his head. His eyes stared into hers, and she couldn't read his emotions out of them. She shivered.  
"I mean, I'm just one of the crowd..." she mumbled quietly, barely audible. Hearing this, his expression changed dramatically. He turned away from her for a second.  
"This is just what I didn't want you to think..." he mumbled. He sounded a bit angry. Caitlyn suddenly felt like crying.  
"I didn't mean it like that, I mean..." she started, her voice cracking. 'I want to talk to you!' she thought. He turned to her, a sad smile on his face.  
"Let's meet again, okay?" he asked, touching her cheek. He was at least a few inches taller than her, she noticed. She nodded. And with a gust of wind, he was gone.


	3. A day in the field

... .:**chapter 2**:...

Caitlyn yawned when someone knocked on her door. And whoever was doing it, it was loud. She climbed out of bed, grabbed a robe from somewhere and opened the door. Her face showed a mix of anger and exhaustion.  
"Colin. I could have known that it was you." she said and groaned. Colin looked energized as always, and grinned.  
"Good morning. Why do you always wake up this late?" he asked innocently.  
"You'd still wake me up like this." Caitlyn said and stared blankly at his grinning face. He ran a hand through his red hair and sighed.  
"Come on. Anya made breakfast, and Rosalie and Benjamin are back." he said. Caitlyn perked up. "They're back?" she yelled, running back into her room. She loved those two so much, they were like a mother and father to her! She grabbed her red-pink assist outfit, boots and stick and put her hair in two ponytails. Then she dashed past Colin, and down the stairs. Out of breath, she arrived in the living room, where everyone stopped and turned to her.

"Don't run down the stairs, I don't want to have to resurrect you!" a low voice said, and Caitlyn grinned. Everyone laughed.  
"Caitlyn. It's been so long! How are you doing, dear?" a feminine voice said. She turned to look at the ringmaster in her deep brown robes. She felt tears well up in her eyes and Rosalie opened her arms. Caitlyn hugged her tightly.  
"Rosalie, where have you been this long?" she sobbed, trying to recall the last time that they had been in down. Rosalie ran a gloved hand through her long, white-blond hair and smiled sadly. "It's been tough training and working for the Guild..." she said, patting Caitlyn's shoulders. Benjamin smiled at them.

"Yes, it's been the same for me." he said, running a hand through his dark brown hair. He had a scar on his tanned skin that she hadn't seen before. She frowned, but decided to not ask about it. Rosalie observed her.  
"You've grown so much... You seem like you're close to level thirty-five already.." she said, smiling. Caitlyn blushed slightly.  
"Yeah. We've been training a lot the last few weeks." she said sheepishly. Samuel nodded as well. He was already close to the 40's. But he was the hardest worker of them all, it seemed.

'I could work harder if Colin gave me a chance to heal him, though.." she thought, sighing.  
"What does everyone plan on doing today? It looks like it's going to rain..." Anya said, wrinkling her nose. Caitlyn followed her gaze to the window. Dark gray clouds were coming closer.  
"I guess we'll still need to train, though." she said, pouting. Colin groaned and buried his head in a pillow that was resting on the sofa he was sitting on. Samuel sighed, barely audible.

"It would be easier if an Elementor could get rid of the rain, though..." Benjamin muttered. Caitlyn felt a strange sensation go through her at the mentioning of an Elementor. She stared out the window and recalled her meeting with Nathan last evening. It all felt so unreal. He seemed like the type who could appear and disappear anywhere at will...  
Then she realized that she felt like talking him again, and that she should have watched her words last night better.  
'I hate having to think this much about things...' she thought, running a hand through her dark blonde hair. Then, Colin stood up. His green eyes seemed like they were sparkling when he grabbed her hand, and Samuel's hand, and pulled them outside. Protesting, she tried to get loose, but his hands were trained from the sword training, and he grinned.  
"We couldn't stick in there forever!" he said, letting them go on a safe distance from the house. Samuel sighed, and pulled his hat a bit move over his eyes. The next moment rain poured down on them. She was soaked immediately and cursed inwardly.  
"COLIN!" she yelled, dashing after him when he took off.

"Caity, stay with Sam today, okay? I'm off to the arena!" he said, and he was gone. She was left there, and smiled at Sam.  
"We got dumped, didn't we..." Sam said and sighed. His black hair looked like the hair of a wet cat, and Caitlyn giggled. Samuel glared at her.  
"Okay, we'll have to fly for a bit, though." he said, smiling. A few minutes later they were at Cardpuppets. Caitlyn was absolutely creeped out by these things. Samuel attempted to calm her.  
"Come on, I won't let them touch you." he said, grinning. Somehow he felt amused again.  
Caitlyn was pressed to the nearest tree now, and one of the dolls came closer to her, and she yelled in fear. Samuel sighed. Then he took out his wand and burned the doll to a pile of ashes. Caitlyn blinked, and looked at his smiling face. Then she sighed, defeated.  
"Okay, let's start." she said, taking out her staff.

Healing Samuel was the easiest thing she had ever done. He barely took damage, and seemed like a completely different person while he teleported from monster to monster, laughing when the fire assaulted the wooden dolls. He looked... Evil. And Caitlyn really liked this side of him for some reason. She found herself laughing evilly for some reason because of that, and Sam laughed with her. A mercenary and his partner stared at them with raised eyebrows, and they both burst out in laughing again.  
"We're really weird, aren't we." Samuel said, his voice still cracking with laughter. Caitlyn nodded. "Correction, you're the strange one here. You look evil!" she said, rolling over in the grass. Samuel chuckled. "Do I? Can't I have fun roasting monsters?"  
"No, really, you had an evil grin on your face, it looked amazing!" she said, wiping tears out of her eyes. They continued to train like this, until the sun peeked out from behind the clothes, and they realized how cold it actually was. They sat down in the damp grass, and Samuel made a little fire that floated in the air with a flick of his wand. Slowly their clothes dried again. Caitlyn sighed.  
"What level do you think I am now?" she asked after a while, a bit sleepy. Samuel stared at her for a bit. "Mm, I think about thirty-eight." he said, smiling. Caitlyn grinned.

"Cool." she said, yawning.  
"Mm... Is it okay if I head out for town a bit? I need to restock on potions..." he said, opening his backpack and only seeing three of the small bottles of blue energy drink. Caitlyn nodded.  
"Don't head out too far into the field, okay?" he said, and then flew off, looking back a few times to make sure that she stayed put. She giggled.


	4. A slight cold, and an unexpected visit?

... .:**chapter 3**:...

And the moment she had nothing to do, she started to think about the mysterious Elementor again. And the moment she thought about him, she saw a shadow tower over her. Blinking sleepily, she stared upwards. To see... Nathan in a pair of jeans and a black t-shirt. She blinked again when he dropped himself next to her, grinning and waiting for her reaction.  
"When did you get here?" she asked, surprised.  
"Late reaction." he said, chuckling. "You seem sleepy. What in the world have you been doing?" he asked her. She smiled awkwardly.  
"Laughing too much and training." she said. He leaned his head on his knee. "Mm-hmm." he said, looking at her. She blushed, even though it was faint.  
"Look, I'm sorry about being so strange yesterday..." she started, running a hand through her hair. He frowned, and then pulled her pink nurse hat off of her head. She stared at him.  
"Everyone is strange to me, just 'cause I'm a guild leader." he said, smiling at her.  
"But isn't it obvious that I wonder why you're talking to me?" she asked sheepishly.  
"Nah, I don't think so. I mean, you seem like a nice person." he said.  
"Nice..?" she asked. "I'd think of weird." she said, laughing.  
"Weird is okay, I guess. I am strange as well, but few people know that." he said, smiling. He had dimples in his cheeks, she noticed. His eyes were green today.  
"Now I know. Like, why do your eyes change color the whole time?" she asked, her voice weakening on the last part of the sentence. He gave her an observant look.  
"You noticed?" he started. "Mm, my eyes are hazel, so they change the whole time."  
"Oh. I think they're.. nice." she squeaked, almost blurting out 'beautiful'. And it seemed like he noticed. He smiled gently at her and smoothed down her hair.  
"Thanks." he said simply, staring off into space.  
"Oh... Can Elementors control the weather?" she asked after a minute of him toying with her hair. Slightly out of breath, she blurted out the question. She really wondered, though!  
"Mm-hmm." he said, and then suddenly stood up.  
"Your friend is coming back." he said, smiling sadly. She blinked.  
"Um... See you later, then?" she asked quietly. He smiled. And then took out a board. The moment he put it on clouds began to form around it. And now it was a riding cloud. She stared at it with open mouth. Then he slowly took off.  
"I'll see you later then, Caitlyn." he said in a melodious voice. She shivered when she heard him say her name. She shook herself.  
"Um... where do you live?" she yelled at him.  
"You'll find out~" he mused, smiling wickedly. She pouted, but then he was gone at the speed of light, it seemed. A gust of wind blew through her hair. And Samuel landed next to her.

"Sorry for taking so long." he said, smiling. Slightly out of breath, she smiled as well.  
"Don't worry about it." she said. He wondered if he should ask about what happened, but he dropped it.  
"Let's continue?" he said, smiling. Caitlyn nodded.

"I feel awful." Caitlyn mumbled, wrapped in a blanket and with a red face. Rosalie felt her forehead and frowned. "I think you have a fever..." she mumbled. Caitlyn groaned.  
"This can't be serious..." she said, fighting back a cough. She wrinkled her nose. Anya pushed a mug of medicinal tea in her hands. Everyone was staring at her. Colin looked down.  
"Sorry, Caity... I didn't want to make you sick.." he mumbled, looking at his hands. Caitlyn frowned. Colin being like this was wrong.  
"Aw, don't worry about it." she said and smiled. "If you go and get something nice for us to eat for dinner, it's okay." she said, smiling evilly. Colin paled for a second, sighed and then nodded.

"Okay then." he mumbled. Samuel smiled slightly. But she already was dozing off, her body felt so warm and it was annoying...  
She woke up a few hours later in her bed, and rolled over. She stared straight into a face and blinked. "Umm.." she started, blinking to see clearly. "Who..?" she mumbled and threw a pillow at what she thought was Sam or Colin. But the person smiled slightly and caught the pillow. And laughed, and Caitlyn knew who he was immediately.  
"Caitlyn..." Nathan mused, leaning his elbow on the side of her bed. Caitlyn smiled slightly.  
"You stalker..." she mumbled. Nathan chuckled, but soon fell silent and felt her forehead just like Rosalie had done. He frowned.  
"Hmm... Seems like you have a cold." he said, grabbing his bag and rummaging through it.  
"No kidding..." she said and groaned, not completely feeling aware of everything. She felt herself move slightly when he sat on the bed. The sun was setting, she noticed

.  
'Maybe he left already...' she thought when she didn't hear anything, and felt a slight feeling of disappointment. Then she felt his warm hand on her head again. He ran his hands through and over her hair, looking at her through half-lidded eyes. After a few minutes he stopped.  
"Hm. No good, you're making me sleepy like this." he said, his voice amused. She peeked open an eye and looked at him. He lay down next to her. She felt way to sleepy to protest this time. He slowly massaged her back and shoulders, and felt her loosen up a bit. Smiling wistfully, he dozed off at about the same time her breathing became even and slow. Caitlyn only remembered feeling warm and comfortable as she sunk into a irresistible warm darkness.


	5. Realisation! And a find?

**... .:chapter 4:...**

"WAAAAH" Caitlyn called out when she woke up and everything that happened came back to her in a flash. Her face was completely red, and it wasn't from the fever she had had yesterday. And of course, Nathan had vanished again, to make it even worse. She buried her face in her hands. What was that guy thinking, coming to see her when she couldn't even say something useful? She couldn't even imagine what embarrassing things she could have said!

And the worst was that she didn't even remember a bit of it.  
Groaning, she stepped out of bed, tripping over her own sheets and landing on the floor painfully. She sighed, but then noticed something under her right hand. It was a small note, scribbled most likely in a hurry. Blinking, she picked it up and unfolded it.

* * *

Feel better :)

Nathan

* * *

She stared at it, and suddenly felt a huge smile on her face, without really knowing why. Then she punched the ground, also without really knowing why.  
"You're acting so strange today..." Samuel said when he opened the door. He raised his eyebrows at her tangled in her sheets, on the floor and with a strange grin on her face. She blinked, and then struggled to stand up normally again.  
"Are you feeling better?" Sam asked, helping her to her feet. The note was crashed in her fist, and she quickly slid it under her pillow.  
"Yeah, a bit... I'm still a bit shaky, though." she said, following him out the door, still in her pajama's. When she was downstairs, four pairs of eyes turned to her and Sam.  
"Caity!" Colin said, grinning. "Are you feeling better?" he asked, playing with a lock of his curly red hair. Caitlyn smiled. "Yeah. Much better, to be honest. Thanks for helping me yesterday, everything..." she said. Benjamin and Rosalie smiled warmly at her. Anya tucked a blanket around her shoulders. Blushing from all the attention, she sat down a chair again.  
"It might snow today..." Sam mused, since he was the one with the better sense of what the weather would be. Everyone stared at him for a second. Then Colin jumped up.

"SNOW!" he said, running around the room.  
"Eheh...". Caitlyn smiled slightly. Snow was nice, but it was cold as well. And since Christmas was nearing, it was fitting. But it had been so warm lately, it seemed impossible!  
"I think it might be snowing already..." Sam continued, a wistful smile on his face. Immediately both Caitlyn and Colin dashed to the window. And yes, there were small white flakes coming down from the sky. White, thick clouds hid the blue sky from view.  
"It's beautiful." Rosalie said, noticing the small layer of white that started to cover everything. Caitlyn nodded. Then Benjamin cleared his throat.  
"Let's take a break today, everyone..." he started. Everyone shouted in glee.  
"Yes, let's do that!" Colin said, grabbing a scarf and hat and dashing out the door. Caitlyn stared after him blankly, and sighed. Sam stood up slowly and took out his black winter jacket. He raised his hand in goodbye and took off. He headed out, walked past the window with his hands in his pockets. She somehow felt a bit melancholic looking at him like that.  
"Hm..." Rosalie mused, leaning against Benjamin for a bit. He smiled and put his arm around her. "The mood for Christmas is finally in the air..." he mused, staring out the window. Caitlyn smiled. Then she stood up, and headed to her room.

Actually, she felt like going outside as well. So she grabbed a deep blue winter jacket from her closet, and an oversize cap in the same color. She put on a white sweater, a white pair of jeans and white fluffy boots. Then she grabbed her stick and attached it to her belt. And then she opened the door to her balcony and took off.  
She could immediately feel the difference when she was on her board. The cold air took some getting used to, and she tried to breathe slowly and shielded her face from the snow. She just planned to fly around for a bit, but then decided to head to Flaris to see how the young kids were doing with their training.

It turned out a bit harder than she thought when she flew over the sea, which had thick mist hanging above it. She coughed and wrinkled her nose. Her dark blue eyes studied the distance until she could see the familiar hills of Flaris appear. A few minutes later she landed in the capital, where Vagrants and older people scurried about busily. A large Christmas tree had been set up in the middle of the place. She pulled the top of her sweater up a bit, and hid half of her face in it. It was way too cold!  
After having bought a few twinkle stones from a cute Vagrant dressed as some kind of Elf, she took a walk through town. And then, for the first time, she noticed a large mansion on the top of a hill, close to town. In the distance it looked huge, and after hesitating for a bit she headed up the hill. The mist cleared, and she saw an old man with a bottle sitting in front of the gate.

"'Scuse me, sir? Are you the owner of this house?" she asked hesitatingly. The man looked at her with bloodshot eyes and she backed up a bit.  
"I sure wish. The owner of this house is a rich person who I've never met before." he said. Caitlyn didn't quite get it and raised her eyebrows.  
"Um... Okay..." she said, walking up and touching the gate. She jumped backwards when the gate swung open. The old man gawked at her. "It never opened for me!" he said, groaning. Caitlyn cautiously stepped through the gate, and it closed behind her. It was an old house, with dark wooden doors. She could hear classical music coming from inside, even though it was faint. In front of the front door she saw a small terrace, shielded from the weather by a small roof. She came a bit closer, and noticed someone sitting in the huge sofa that was half turned away from her. Coming even closer, she gasped.

It was Nathan. Nathan lived in here? She stared at his sleeping face. He looked kind of troubled, a small frown was on his face. His dark hair poked out in all directions, and he had a black robe on, tied around the middle.

Right when she was about to sneak away again, his eyes fluttered open.


	6. House visit

**... .:chapter 5:...**

"Whaa..." he started sleepily, rubbing his eyes. Then he noticed Caitlyn standing there, a horrified expression on her face, and frozen in a run-away position. And he laughed.  
"Caitlyn, sit down." he said, waving with his hand and summoning a second chair. Awkwardly she sat down in the chair. He stared at her for a bit, and smiled.

"So, I told you that you'd find out where I lived." he said.  
"Aren't you mad that I sneaked in?" she asked, a bit confused. He shook his head and sighed.  
"I'd be mad if you took that crazy drunk old man in here." he said. Caitlyn laughed, a bit more comfortable. "Your house is pretty." she said, smiling. He groaned.  
"You don't want to see how it looks inside. I can't keep things in order in there..." he said, seeing her confused expression. "But yes, I love this house.". He smiled.  
"Can I look inside?" she asked sheepishly. He nodded. "Go ahead, but watch out." he said, smirking. She sighed. "It can't be that bad." she said, taking off her jacket and heading inside.

Well, it turned out that it could be that bad. Books were piled everywhere, and all kinds of musical instruments and Cd's were spread out over tables, chairs, and closets. She coughed because of the dust in here.  
"I wasn't aware that this was even possible..." she mumbled, brushing the dust off of an old trumpet. She also saw a guitar, and a stairway that led to a locked door. She was curious, but not planning to make him mad, so she walked away again. Back outside, she noticed that he had fallen asleep again. This time he leaned his head on his hand, and his elbow on the edge of the chair. He looked more peaceful than just now. Carefully, she put a blanket around his shoulders. He smiled slightly.  
"Sorry... I'm just exhausted..." he said and sighed. She frowned, about to ask him why, but decided to not ask him about that. She brushed his hair out of his face on impulse, and pulled her hand back quickly again. The most gentle expression appeared on his face, and he smiled.

"You're a nice person indeed." he simply said. She blushed.  
"I like your house. Is it okay if I visit you every now and then?" she asked carefully. He stared at her for a bit, his eyes a brilliant light blue.  
"Yeah, that's fine. But don't tell anyone." he said. Suddenly she heard some kind of alarm bell, and looked up, pretty alarmed. Nathan stood up as well.  
"I have to go, and I think you should get out of here as well..." he said, giving her an apologetic look. She nodded.  
"What was-" she started, but he put his index finger on her lips and smiled.  
"I'll tell you, but not now." he said. The next moment she felt like she was flying through the sky at light speed, and the moment after, she found herself, confused, sitting on the floor in her room again.

"I can't believe that guy." she mumbled, kind of annoyed. She ran her hand through her hair and sighed. She felt kinda strange again, had no idea what do to. So she set out again, searching for a partner to train with. This time she left her board in her pocket, and walked over the main road with her hands in her pockets. She headed towards town, kicking at piles of snow, since it was still snowing. When she arrived in town, she noticed that there was a huge Christmas tree here as well. People still were stalled around here, but more people sold warmer clothes right now. There were stands for hot cocoa everywhere as well. She smiled, and then noticed Colin, behind a stand, and snoozing. Rolling her eyes, she walked over to him and poked his shoulder. He woke up quickly, jumping up and knocking her over.

"Colin! Why are you sleeping if you should be selling stuff?" she asked sheepishly. He stared at her. "Sorry, Caity! It's just so comfortable, the sight of snow..." he sighed dreamily. Caitlyn rolled her eyes again. She patted his head, and then looked at the things he was selling. Her eyes fell on a white scarf, long and most likely hand-made. She touched it in wonder, feeling some kind of magic buzz through her fingers.  
"Colin, where in the world did you get this?" she asked. He shrugged.  
"I bought it and 'm reselling it again." he said. "I'll take it." she said, smiling.  
"How much?" she asked. He wrinkled his nose. "Take it as a present." he said. She grinned and hugged him tightly.

"Thanks, Colin." she said, not noticing the slight blush on his face. She put the scarf around her neck. "It looks nice on ya, Caity." Colin said and grinned. She smiled.  
"I'm leaving now, though. But I guess no one feels like training right now.."  
"Ya could try and look in the Arena. It's a lot of fun." he said and smiled. She thought about it.  
"Well, since I have nothing better to do... How do I get there?" she asked him. He grinned. "I'll come with ya." he said. "What about your stand here?" she asked. He smiled.  
"Sam, wake up!" he yelled, poking something next to him. Samuel got up, groaning.

"What in the world..." he started, shaking his head. He glared at him.  
"Why is everyone sleeping.." Caitlyn mused.  
"I'ma take Caity to the Arena." he said, smiling. "Can you watch the stand for a bit?"  
"Fine, fine." he said, still a bit annoyed. He saw the scarf.  
"Looks good on you." he said and smiled. Caitlyn blushed a bit. "Thanks." she said. Colin stood up and grabbed his board. "I don't have mine." she said, wrinkling her nose..  
"Lift with me on mine then." he said in a more serious tone. She nodded.  
"Let's get going!" he yelled when they took off.


	7. The arena, and the many people within

**... .:chapter 6:...**

The arena was nothing like she imagined it to be. It was huge, and there were so many people that she could barely see the fights in the middle of the arena. Colin frowned when he pocketed his board.  
"It's not always this busy." he said, pushing his way though the crowd. Curious, Caitlyn followed him. She could hear shouting coming from the crowd. Suddenly Colin turned around.  
"It's not really a good time to be here, some Guild Leaders are fighting..." he said. She felt her heart jump for a second. "Why is that bad?" she asked, giving him a blank stare.  
"Well, they tend to use a lot of power, and that may be dangerous..." he mumbled, a bit uncomfortable. She grinned, seeing that he actually was worrying about her.

"Nah. I'm curious now, so I'm going to look." she said, before pushing her way to the front.  
"I knew it..." she mumbled softly. In the middle of a huge cloud of dust, she could distinguish a knight in black armor and an elementor in fiery red robes. They were going at it, and it looked like this was some kind of tournament. Sparks flew where staff and sword connected, and every fire spell that hit the dusty ground sent up a cloud of dusty air, which had the audience coughing. She could barely see their faces; the knight was an older person, she could see the deep lines in his face. But the thing that made him frightening is that he had no emotion on his face at all. His eyes looked dead. She shivered.  
And the elementor was the Guild Leader of the Elementors, Nathan. Though she had the feeling no one else knew his name. He was younger, obviously, and he seemed to be having quite some trouble with the strong fighter. It was cold, and his breath condensed in the air. His eyes looked like they were on fire. Colin looked at her entranced face from the corner of his eyes. And sighed.  
"I'm going to walk around for a bit, okay?" he said, patting her shoulder. She nodded quickly, not taking her eyes off the fight.

"Weak!" the knight yelled when he pushed against Nathan's staff, making him have to step backwards. Gritting his teeth, the elementor jumped back, sending a blazing Firebird at the Knight. Unprepared, the knight got hit square in the chest, falling back. Caitlyn held her breath for a second. Nathan straightened himself and she thought she could see a hint of a smile come back to his face.

The next moment though, in a flurry of movement, the knight had him pinned the floor, their weapons clashed against each other on just inches of his face. The shocked Elementor's eyes widened, and the knight smirked. Caitlyn felt herself become nervous now, and then remembered that she had never felt like this while looking at a fight... ever. Her hands were fisted and held at her chest, and she suddenly realized that the crowd had been cheering loudly the whole time. And she felt herself straighten up. 'Should I call out to him?'

That decision was quickly made, as she put her hands to her mouth and yelled his name as hard as she could. "NATHAN! BEAT HIM!" she yelled. And she could feel the eyes on her. But luckily she was one of many, and the others didn't really bother to look around. But Nathan did. His face turned to her, his eyes wide and his mouth half open to say something. But then a smirk spread over his face, and in one blast of magic the Knight was flung across the arena in a flurry of white and blue. Nathan towered over him this time, a shadow over his eyes. The Knight's hands were frozen to the ground, and his face was scrunched up in the angriest expression she had ever seen. And Nathan had the wickedest expression on his face that she had ever seen. The fight was over, though, and the elementor spun on his heel and vanished into the crowd, that parted for him without a word. Silence hung over the arena. Until one person began to cheer. And everyone else did, and Caitlyn swore she never had cheered so hard in her life. Something in her just screamed that she should, so she did. And she had a huge grin on her face while doing it.

Colin stared at her silently, before smiling as well and waiting for her to return to him. So they could head home.


	8. Snowy weather

**... .:chapter 7:...**

"You really should focus better." Colin said and sighed. Caitlyn grumbled.  
"I do not like to do this." she said, nibbling on her pen. Rarely the job schools gave them homework, but because they thought she seemed 'uninterested' so they gave her even more. It still was snowing outside, but it was so much that the monsters had gone into hibernation and there was no use in training outside. The only options would be the dungeons, where it was stone cold. Only very strong people managed to stay on their feet in cold like that. And she had a lot of training to go before she could be strong like that.

Also, it was Christmas today, which ment that no one even wanted to train. A small smile crept up her face when she thought of the big Christmas Tree they had set up downstairs. All of them had helped to make it beautiful, and it looked amazing.  
'I wonder if we overdid it though...' she thought. The tree might not be able to take the decorations. Oh well. Her mind didn't stop drifting off, though. She suddenly stood up, stretching her arms. Colin gave her a questioning look. "I'm heading out!" she said cheerfully, already on her way downstairs.

"It's freezing!" he yelled after her sleepily from not moving the whole day. She just smiled more and put on her jacket. And indeed, when she opened the door she just saw a wall of snow. She groaned. Then she went back inside, closed the door behind her and left the house via the balcony, with her board of course. And outside, she could barely believe what she saw.  
It was deserted outside. No one, I repeat no one was outside, so everything was covered in a thick layer of white snow. It also was silent outside, and she sighed.  
"It's pretty..." she whispered. She speeded up her board, feeling the icy wind in her face and lungs. But it felt refreshing somehow, and she kept flying.

"No mothbees in the sky either, huh..." she mumbled, a smile on her face. Then she landed on her favorite place, a small island floating in the sky. A lone tree stood on the white mass, and she heard snow shift and crunch when she landed. Careful not to cause some kind of avalanche, moved forward until she could find the bark of the tree. Then she slid down the trunk and leaned her back against it. She sighed, her breath making little clouds in the sky. Her dark pants turned white where they weren't under the tree. All the sounds were dulled somehow, maybe because of the snow... And it made her sleepy.

"Don't fall asleep here..." she heard a voice nearby mumble suddenly. Jerking up, she turned around. Just as she expected, the tall Elementor was standing in the snow, a few meters from her. He was clad in a dark brown jacket, and jeans, and had a brown cap on his raven hair. His eyes shone icy blue in the white world. She smiled sheepishly.  
"Hi~" she said. He walked over, seemingly with difficulty, and dropped himself in the snow next to her without a sound. He sighed as well. She peeked at him from the corner of her eyes, a bit awkward.  
"Um... Nice fight, a few days ago..." she mumbled, playing with a lock of her blond hair. Again, his presence made her shy, and it was annoying...

"I was surprised to see you there..." he mused. She looked at his face, but he was still smiling.  
"A friend brought me along." she said, smiling slightly. The skies turned a darker gray and it started to snow more. The snowflakes became thicker. Nathan turned his eyes to the sky for a few seconds.  
"It was because of you that I won, I think..." he mumbled, barely audible. She looked at him, barely processing what he was saying. 'Really? Is that serious?' she thought, actually wanting to ask those questions. But she didn't, she just smiled. He smiled at her awkwardly, obviously expecting her to say something. She shrugged.  
"I'm glad." she simply said. He looked at her and stayed silent for a while. They both stared at the snow for a bit. She could feel a tingling feeling in her body as he shifted so they could both sit next to each other properly under the tree. She could feel the feeling stronger where his shoulder touched hers, and she scolded herself.

"Say... How is it to be a Guild Leader?" she asked, hesitating a bit. He shrugged.  
"It's very busy, but also very rewarding. I don't mind it." he said and smiled.  
"Don't you have people targeting you for the leadership or something?" she asked sheepishly. He chuckled. "Nah. I think you read too many novels. My guild members are friendly, at least the side of them that I know.". "Sorry for thinking that they're evil." Caitlyn mumbled under her breath. He laughed again; it resounded in the thick air. Caitlyn pulled her scarf up higher and looked at him with her dark blue eyes.  
"Do they know this side of you, then?" she asked quietly. A blush crept up her face, and she tried to hide it with her scarf again. He looked at her for a second, his face expressionless.

'I didn't ask something bad, did I...' she thought, actually panicking. Then he smiled and leaned over as if to whisper something in her ear.  
"Nah. This side is reserved for you.' he said quietly. He smirked, and smirked even more when her face turned beet red. Then he spun on his heel and vanished in the gust of wind she usually felt when he would disappear.

"That guy thinks and acts in clichés..." she whispered. 'It's still...' she thought though.  
"Ahh, this is so messed up!" she said, grabbing her board. Even his footsteps had vanished. All the awkwardness from before turned into some kind of annoyance. While flying back, her mind was still yelling at her.  
'You know yourself that that was obviously flirting! I can't expect a guild leader to do things like that? What is he thinking? What should I do? Why am I thinking in questions? AHH, this is so messed up!'

She blinked her eyes a few times when she made her way through the wall of snow in front of the house. She hadn't even gotten to see the town yet. 'Didn't think of it, and it's his fault..'  
She groaned, dropping herself on the couch. And suddenly she noticed that it was silent. Checking her watch, she saw that it was five o'clock already. And it was becoming darker slowly but steadily.

"Anyone around?" she yelled, wondering where everyone vanished to. She could hear people moving upstairs.  
"I'm sleeping!" Colin yelled. Caitlyn rolled her eyes. "Anyone else around?" she asked.  
"Nope, everyone's headed to town!" he yelled. "There's a festival of some kind tonight at midnight! Let's go later, okay?" he yelled/asked. "Sure!" she yelled back. Then she dropped herself in the chair. Flicking her fingers with a bit of magic, the lights went off and the tree glowed red and gold in the candlelight. She stared at the tree.  
'It feels strange to not have everyone here...' she thought quietly.

Suddenly she wanted him to be there as well. Though she wouldn't admit that to herself... She groaned, burying her face in the pillow.


	9. Under the stars

**... .:chapter 8:...**

Someone was shaking her shoulders.  
She groaned, swatting the hands away. Said person scoffed, and then sighed.  
"It's already eleven! Everyone is in town by now!" Colin said. Caitlyn sleepily blinked at him.  
"Your hair looks fiery in this light..." she muttered, turning around and burying her face in the pillow. Colin sighed, but then smiled mischievously. Then he picked her up easily and set her on her feet. She took a few seconds to process what he just did, and then continued to yell at him. He gave her an amused look.  
"What else should I do? You wanted to go out as well, right?" he said simply. His green eyes looked into hers for a second, then he looked away. She smiled sheepishly.  
"Ah, sorry. You know how I am when I wake up, right?". He closed his eyes, running a hand through his curly hair. "Yeah. But now we really have to hurry." he said, pushing her to the door. She smiled and resisted the urge to stand still to bother him more. Slowly she changed into her long jacket and put on her white cap and scarf. She yawned when they headed out the door.

Someone had cleared up the snow, and it glowed magically in the little light that came from the floating lamps around town. The sky was a dark blue, so close to black that you could barely see the difference. A couple of bright stars shimmered, and she squinted to see them better. Then she turned to Colin, who seemed a bit spaced out.  
"How are we getting to down? Blinkwings?" she asked, wrinkling her nose when the cold came to it. Colin nodded. "Yeah, I still had one around. C'mere." he said, gesturing to right next to him. She moved over to his side and smiled when she saw him taking a blue, stone-like object out of his pocket. It glowed serenely in the cold air. It glowed even more when he tapped it a few times with his gloved hand. Air rushed past their faces, and colors blended because of the speed they were moving at. Gasping for air (she hadn't traveled this way a lot of time) she grabbed the Mercenary's arm tightly. And the next second, they were sitting at the statue in the middle of the city. Confused, she let herself be pulled to her feet.

"Whoa, that's extreme.." she mumbled, her eyes wide for a few seconds. Then all the noise came through to her ears. She looked around.  
It wasn't snowing now, and people were sweeping the piles off of the main path. It was busy, busier than she had ever seen before, and she could see people on the church, working on fireworks. People were grouped together and chatting happily, walking past all of the stalls (which were, of course, all holiday themed) and buying things.  
"Where is everyone?" she asked, grinning. Colin grinned as well.

"Over there." he said, pointing to a small group of people near to a hot chocolate stand. Before he knew it she already was halfway there, and he followed her quickly, sighing. Caitlyn grinned when she saw Sam's dark hair, covered in a thick layer of snow. And the others were laughing at him. She laughed as well, and he sent her an annoyed look when he saw her. But then he smiled again, showing a brilliant white smile.  
"Hi, Caitlyn." he said. Rosalie smiled when Caitlyn reached up to hug her. Then she hugged Benjamin and Anya, then Sam, and lastly Colin, who stiffened for an instant. Then he smiled and patted her back.  
"Town is beautiful." she said, looking around. She noticed the little glowing colored lights on the buildings. "Magical." she added. A silence fell over them and they all turned to their own thoughts for a moment.  
Suddenly she had a very strong feeling. She sighed.  
"Is it okay if I look around for a bit?" she asked, smiling brightly.  
"Sure, go ahead." Rosalie said. "We'll hang around here for a bit." she said, gesturing to Ben. He almost was sleeping again. Caitlyn giggled.  
"I'm off, then!" she said, turning around and running from them, into the crowd. She cursed herself when she found herself looking for Nathan yet again.  
"This is too silly..." she mumbled. She didn't recall feeling like this before, and she wasn't sure what it was. But she decided that she liked it (at least a bit!). She stopped after a few minutes, breathing quickly. Her face felt like it was glowing in the cold air. Where was that Elementor? Surely he was around at an event like this!

'I'll take a walk, then...' she mused, heading up the road that led to the old airport. She felt the soft silence return when the snow was thick on the road again. It became thicker and thicker, until she felt her legs hurt from the cold. She stared at them wordlessly, and then took out her stick. She spun it around a few times, whispering a few spell words. The spell circle appeared around her and glowed for a few seconds. Then the magic worked on her legs and she felt a bit better. She kicked some snow away and let herself fall backwards. She didn't hear a sound when she landed on it. A melancholic feeling fell over her when she stared at the starry night. After a few minutes it felt like her body was glowing, and she closed her eyes and smiled wistfully.

'I am rather silly, aren't I... Being moody like this for really no reason.' she thought, sighing. Personally, she thought that she was a very strange person. Her mind always went off in random directions for some reason, and it was pretty annoying at times. Like now, she felt disappointment wash over her and she barely knew why. She opened her eyes again, raising her hand to the sky. She moved it a bit, staring blankly at the sky behind it.  
"Reaching for the stars, huh?" a voice came from very nearby. She barely was startled this time, but she was when he leaned over her and intertwined his fingers with hers.  
"I was looking around for you..." she said. Her heart sped up and she forced herself to breathe normally. She moved to sit normally, but he didn't try to move his hand away from hers.  
'Ahh, think normally!' she thought, not looking at him on purpose. He stared at the sky speechlessly.

"Say..." he started. She looked at him, unconsciously tightening her grip on his hand. Her body felt like it was glowing, and the feeling flowed through her from where his hand connected with hers. It felt nice, she decided, and banned out miserable thoughts for now.  
"Ah, I'm not sure how to say it." he said and chuckled. He reached up and pulled his dark cap off of his head. "It's nice being around you, I guess." he said and looked at her while a half-smile spread over his face.. She held her breath for a second when a feeling of joy blasted through her (even though it was such a simple sentence!) and rendered her incapable of thinking normally. Shaking her head slightly, she smiled.

"I'm only nice when I'm around you." she said and smirked. He looked at her, thinking of what to say. "Hmm, you mean that you're actually very mean?" he asked, a smirk on his face as well. She nodded. "Yeah. I don't do my homework, I'm uninterested at school, I yell at the people at home..." she started, trailing off a bit. She sighed. Nathan kept quiet for a while.  
"I'm sure that's because you care for them. I mean, at home, not at school..." he said, laughing quietly. "Maybe there are just a lot sides to you."  
"And that isn't bad?" she asked, smiling slightly. He shook his head and then raised their hands into the air. "Nah. Be happy that you can be yourself." he said.  
"Can't you then?" she asked quietly. He fell silent for a moment.  
"Not always, I'm a guild Leader after all." he said, sighing. He dropped himself in the snow.  
"You'll get lots of snow in your hair like that." she said. He closed his eyes and smiled wistfully.  
"I don't care." he simply said. "Thanks for worrying though." he added, peeking one eye open.  
"You'll catch a cold." she said, raising her eyebrows. He rolled over in the snow, got his face full of snow and jerked up again.  
"I didn't want that to happen though." he said, before starting to laugh. Caitlyn felt her face twitch when she didn't laugh along, so she did. Then she handed him a part of her scarf.  
"Take the snow off, sillyface.." she said, smiling. He grinned.  
"Thanks."

"Why were you out here alone?" he then asked, after having somehow melted the snow off of her scarf in the cold.  
"Um..." she started, looking everywhere except for his face. He looked at her intently.  
"Well? Or is it a secret why you were out here alone so far from the rest...?"  
"Why do you think? Guess." she said nervously. She couldn't read his face anymore, just like that. His eyes looked at the sky again.  
"Mm... I have absolutely no idea. I don't want to suggest something that you'd find..." he said, leaving the rest of the sentence hanging in the air between them. She sighed.  
"I guess I was wondering where you were on a busy evening like this." she said, a little shakily. He turned to her. A small smile appeared on his face again, yet a bit sad.  
"Really?" he asked quietly. She sighed.  
"Yes. I'm sorry if I'm acting like I'm stalking you. The thing is.. you do it to me too." she said, smiling. He laughed. "Well, that's true, I guess. You should be with your friends now, though."  
"I know. Just wanted to say hi, you know.. Since it's a festival and all..." she said and laughed awkwardly. He smiled. "Thanks. I like your company." he said. She blushed.  
"From tomorrow everyone will be training again, including me..." he mused. She blinked.  
"You haven't been?" she asked sheepishly. He smirked. "No. If I train I train seriously, I don't hang around here a lot." he said. Caitlyn sighed. "Ah. I see. Good luck, then." she said, as some kind of a good-bye. His eyes were twinkling, dark blue as the sky when she took his hand to stand up.

"I have to get going now, though." he said, running a hand through his hair. She nodded, not saying anything. He saw her staring at the ground. Her scarf was pulled up higher, and a red hue colored her cheeks red. Nathan smiled.  
"You're cute like this, somehow.." he mused. She blinked.  
"What did you say?" she said, staring into his eyes. He chuckled.  
"Nothing, nothing.". Then he bent over, brushing his lips against her cheek, close to the corner of her mouth. "I'll see you around." he said quietly, but she didn't answer, already rendered speechless. He touched her cheek with his gloved hand, and then vanished in a cloud of snow.

"Gone again..." Caitlyn muttered, holding her fingers against the place where he had given her some kind of a kiss. A feeling of annoyance rose up in her and she stomped down the road, back to the others.

_Why did he always disappear like that?_


	10. Forest

**...:chapter 9:...**

"Caitlyn, you really should go outside and do something!" Benjamin muttered, seeing her stare out of the window. Caitlyn looked up, half-annoyed.  
"I've been outside already, right? I trained for a long time today.." she said, then smiled slightly. "But yeah, I should do that. Need me to get anything?"  
"Nope, but you could see in town if people need stuff..."  
"Okay, that should be possible." she answered him with a smile. Soundlessly she slipped into her jacket and hat and was out of the door within minutes. After she closed the door, the Billposter's gaze lingered on it for a while. Something was definitely different about the young Assist. Ever since the winter festival a month ago. What was different? Well, she seemed bored the whole time, she rarely really looked excited like she used to look.  
But what could he do about it? Not much. He sighed, looking at his paper again.

_'I wonder what he's doing now..._'Caitlyn thought while flying through the cloudless skies. Spring had arrived without a notice, and the snow had made place for the light green and the fresh air of the season. Even though it looked warmer, it barely was, and her breath condensed in the cold air while she flew. Yes, she hadn't heard anything from the Elementor in over a month now. She remembered the words that had reminded her of how busy he actually was like he had said them yesterday.

_'I'll be training, most likely'._

Did that mean that it was no use looking for him? She did, she went to his house, looked all around Saint Morning, but found no trace of the Guild Leader. Her thoughts were still miles away from the tasks she was supposed to do. She had leveled up a lot though. She managed to not act strange around Colin, because she didn't want to worry him. He worried quickly, especially when it was about her. She knew him good enough for that. Sighing, she folded up her board. Her footsteps resounded on the metal grounds of Darkon. She was up for a challenge, and maybe she would find some quest items by chance so she didn't have to fight monsters. She wasn't really good at that, anyway, since she was a Full Support with quite low health. Smiling slightly, she walked over to the lady clad in red. She was shouting all kinds of quests.

"Is there anything I can do to ask?" she asked, braiding her blond hair in the meantime. The lady blinked a few times.  
" Your level is way too low, right?" she asked sheepishly. Caitlyn felt annoyance rise up. Like she didn't know that!  
"I'm aware of that, but I have some tricks.." she said and smirked when she saw the unmistakably curious look on the other's face.  
"Then, I'd like you to head over to Antiqueries." she said and smiled.  
" I need some leaves of the hugest tree you can see. They're miracle workers for medicine.." she said, but then trailed off. "I get it." Caitlyn said and grinned. She felt a short rush of adrenaline when she thought of going to such high-level monsters. And there was a short, small spark of hope of seeing Nathan over there. She waved at the quest lady and turned around, grabbing her board again. She felt eyes on her as she flew away from town. Her thoughts were far from that though, when she felt the cold cave air enter her lungs for the first time. She had to cast a minor healing spell over herself before she could continue; the air felt horrible in her lungs, too moist and too heavy for her head to stay clear. She became a bit worried; was she really strong enough for this? She swallowed the lump in her throat and then continued.

She already didn't regret going when she saw light at the end of the cave. And when she flew out into it, she could see one of the most beautiful areas she had ever seen. Huge, light green and blue mushrooms rose above her, and mushroom-like monsters dwelt around, grunting boredly while walking around aimlessly. There were less people over here, she noticed. She continued, though, a bit afraid to get off of her board in this area. But once she continued on, under a huge gate, she saw the spongy material of the mushrooms quickly being replaced by thick grass. The air became heavier again, but this time she was more used to it. When she looked around her she saw that she was in an enormous forest. Trees rose around her, their trunks ten, twenty times thicker than the trees at home. Plants hung from them, leeching from the elderly trees for life. Strange monsters with masks ran around, screeching at her. She shivered and flew farther quickly, forcing herself not to get scared. She knew that these monsters could knock her out within a second if they wanted to. And it would hurt, she really could imagine!

The next wonder she saw was a moving tree. And when she was the hugest tree she had ever seen, she knew that she was in the right area. She had planned to go to the leaves immediately, but her attention was distracted quickly by a small fleck in the distance. She felt a surge of adrenaline go through her again at the thought of seeing someone battle these monsters, and she flew a bit higher not to be seen. She heard a rumbling sound when she came closer, and she saw the fleck grow to a human size. It was a man, and he looked super powerful from the distance where she was. He carried a huge axe, and spun around with it to chop all the trees in half. Sparks flew and the strange grunts of the monsters filled her ears. It made her shiver, and she flew on. She saw several more fighters, none of them even paying the slightest of attention to her. Then she noticed a group of fighers, all standing still around the trunk of a tree. She flew a bit closer, even though she had the feeling she wasn't supposed to be here.

" … Wake up, come on!" she heard a man's voice say. He sounded worried.  
"He isn't waking up.. We should get help, really..." a woman's voice said, rushed. Caitlyn couldn't get closer and frowned. Someone was in trouble?  
A moment later both of them were gone, leaving a third person behind. Whoever it was, he wasn't moving. She could faintly feel the slow pounding of his heart because of her Assist abilities. She was too worried to not do anything. She flew closer hesitatingly, and then climbed down from her board. The floor felt hard on her feet for some reason, and she felt a lot more danger than she had up there. The monsters didn't see her, though, and she hurried to the unconscious fighter.

When she saw who it was, she gasped. Her heartbeat picked up and she could hear her heart pounding in her ears.


	11. Forest II

**...:chapter 10:...**

"Nathan?" she whispered hoarsely, feeling the worry spread through her quicker than the adrenaline did. She almost fell while hurrying the last few meters to the Elementor's side. It was certainly him. His red robes were flecked with green from the grass around, and his glasses were lopsided. She could see his eyes closed, long black lashes brushing against his darker skin. Even though he was hurt, obviously, she could feel a blush appear on her face. She sat down next to him, pulling him a bit so he wasn't in the uncomfortable position he was in first, half sitting, half lying down against the trunk.

'_Nathan...'_ she thought, shakily running the tips of her fingers over his cheek. He didn't move. Then she took out her stick, wondering if it even would work. She started to feel the healing magic rise in her, and she touched his hand to strengthen the effect. She held her breath for a second when her magic entered his body. It flowed through his blood and she could feel him waking up. She pulled back slowly, not to shock him. She smiled sleepily (it takes a lot of energy to heal a high level person), and looked at his face. His eyes slowly opened, and he flexed his hands. He didn't move for about a minute. Then he sat up quickly, looking around him with a freaked expression on his face."  
" What? I fell asleep in such an important fight? I was sure that I was about to.. What to do..." he muttered, staring at the ground.  
"Um..." Caitlyn started, blinking. He looked at her, shocked. "Caitlyn...?" he started, before the situation occurred to him. He looked deep in thought for a second. Then he smiled.  
"I'm sorry... I passed out, didn't I..." he mumbled quietly. Caitlyn blinked, trying to keep track with his switching moods.

"Well, I think your team mates went to get help... I tried to heal you, I guess it worked a bit.. And I wasn't coming to look for you, I was looking for leaves, okay?" she said, feeling her face become red, looking away from his face. When she looked at him again after a short silence, she saw that his eyes had changed from the mixture of colors to a brilliant blue.  
"You're still as silly as you were before, weren't you..." he said, smiling. He straightened himself, and tested his muscles. "You saved me, I guess. I owe you now..." he said, looking at her. Caitlyn wasn't sure what to say, she smiled sheepishly.

"Yeah, I guess..." she said. "I'm.. glad to see you again..

she muttered, looking away again, a blush on her face. She felt small suddenly, next to such a powerful person. Now he had recovered again, she could feel his energy come out in waves that made her dizzy. He seemed to have noticed and smiled slightly. Then he suddenly took his staff, picked her up with one arm, and then teleported straight into the tree. Caitlyn gasped, clinging to him when she saw at what height they were. The tree monsters suddenly were very small!

"I kind of need to talk to you... Sorry for not meeting you for such a long time." he said, keeping his arm around her waist. He took off his huge hat with one hand and set it next to him. "I haven't trained enough lately, my guild mates were complaining that they were catching up with me. And they woke me up too early, so I wasn't in best states today." he mumbled awkwardly. Caitlyn wasn't used to seeing him awkward, and smiled slightly. The blush was still evident on her face though, most likely because his arm was around her in such a way. A part of her, though, wanted him to never let go again. She realized how sad she had felt without him around for such a long time. She didn't really want to tell him, though. Wouldn't it upset him? She wasn't sure how to act around him... Her head couldn't think normally anymore.

"... You really should take better care of yourself, you know..." she started, trailing off as his gaze lingered on her. He looked at her with a half-amused half-curious expression. She sighed.  
"I missed you, you know.. ..." she mumbled. She felt his arm tighten around her for a second. Mixed emotions showed on her face. She wrinkled her nose. "I'm being strange, aren't I... Sorry for that... It's your fault though!" she mumbled, staring down at the ground, all fear of heights seeming ineffective on her.  
Even though she was regretting every strange word she was saying, he looked amused. She jumped from her thoughts when he took his gloves off and turned her face to face him. His blue eyes looked into hers with a burning intensity.  
"No, I don't think so. And.. Why would it be my fault?" he said quietly, serious. Her face turned even pinker than it already had been. "Um..." she started. She didn't know what to say seriously this time, and her hand made its way to his, the one he had on her cheek. She felt braver than usual as she laced her fingers with his. Her heart was beating so hard now, she was sure that he could hear it. She forgot the height, everything. She looked up at his face, and saw that his expression had changed; it looked half confused, half happy, and a lot more that she couldn't explain. His eyes turned into a rainbow of colors, and he leaned a bit closer, running his thumb over her cheek. She could feel his warmth, even closer, and she almost panicked, no idea what to do.

She almost froze when he pressed his lips against hers, pulled her face closer to his. But after a second or two, her eyes fluttered shut, her other arm went up to circle his neck, and she forgot everything around her. He moved against her a bit, pulling her a bit closer as well. His movements weren't as certain as they usually were, they were shy and uncertain in stead. She felt like the world was ending when he leaned back from her, his face red as well, his eyes looking everywhere except her. Suddenly a huge smile bloomed on his face.  
"Oh." he said, at a loss of words. A smile spread over his face. His smile was contagious and she found herself smiling uncontrollably.  
Caitlyn hushed him after a few moments, laughing softly.

"Ssh.." she said quietly. He looked into her eyes for a second, a small smile twisting the corners of his lips up. The sounds of the forest filled their ears. It was comforting. Birds chirped quietly, as if not to bother them by being too loud, and the stream of water nearby formed a comfortable background buzz. Caitlyn smiled. Nathan looked at her.

"What does this mean, Caitlyn?" he said quietly. Caitlyn bit her lip.

"I'm not sure..." she said quietly. She leaned her head against his shoulder. 


	12. Passing Time

**Chapter 11**

Caitlyn lay in bed, her thoughts messed up and blurry. She had her pillow clutched to her chest, and felt like a giddy teenage girl (which she was, but she always had felt above such feelings). She sighed, a bit annoyed. But the strange happiness inside of her made a grin spread over her face, and that grin didn't go away. Faintly she could remember what had happened after that, but it was blurred, and her mind had been unclear ever since.

"I'll come to visit you at a random time.". His smile looked crooked, and he couldn't fight the small blush on his face. "Let's talk this over, if you want to."  
"Yeah, that should be fine... I'll see you, then?" I said, the same awkward smile on my face.  
So much would change after this. I wasn't sure in which way, though.

It was the next morning now, and she had parted with him with a fuzzy feeling throughout her whole body. Somehow she couldn't comprehend that something like that would happen. She hadn't ever expected something like that. But she didn't really mind, honestly.  
The sun shone in her eyes, and she stretched out and yawned. It really felt better to wake up late, she decided. She felt completely awake for the first time in weeks. She jumped out of bed, brushed her hair quickly, and put on a pair of black loose pants and a white blouse. She tied back her blond hair with a white ribbon.  
"I wonder when he'll come by..." she mused, a small smile on her face. She tied the ribbon, put a bow in it. Today was Saturday, and that ment that there was no training to do, no work to do do. Nor were there quests to do. She absolutely loved the weekend. She hooked her stick to her belt, on the place where it usually was. Then she headed out to her balcony, leaning on the thick wood. The wind blew through her hair and made it tickle her neck ever so slightly, but she didn't bother to brush it away.

She looked up when she saw someone on a board near her. She blinked.

"Oh! Hi!" she yelled at Nathan. She was surprised to see him in a pair of jeans and a black T-shirt! Grinning, he hopped off of his board and onto her balcony. Caitlyn grinned as well, and walked over to him. He took her hands and pulled her into a hug. She blushed furiously, what only made him look more amused.  
"Good morning, Caitlyn.." he said into her hair, smiling slightly. "You look nice today.." he mumbled, a bit quieter. Caitlyn smiled, looking up at him. His fingers tickled the base of her neck, playing with the hair there. She blushed a bit more and that didn't go unnoticed; he smiled and wrapped an arm around her waist, picking her up and plopping her onto the couch there. He smiled even when she protested, and then he sat next to her, staying quiet. Caitlyn blinked when she saw that he closed his eyes and sighed.

"Say..." he started, cutting himself off. He looked at her quickly, then away again.  
"About yesterday..." Caitlyn started when he stayed quiet. "I've been thinking about this for a while... What.. Did that mean, exactly?" she said quietly. He stayed quiet for a bit again. "Mm... I think it means a lot. I don't kiss people every day..." he said. Caitlyn looked at him incredulously; he sounded like he was joking. But he actually was blushing, his fringe hiding his right eye from view. She smiled and reached out to brush it out of his face. He looked up at her, suddenly looking less like the mighty Elementor she had seen him as. He smiled. "Let's not rush ahead on things; just see how it goes." he said, concluding the discussion for now. "Mm.." Caitlyn mused. "Is that okay?" he said, leaning forward a bit, looking into her dark blue eyes. She looked back, feeling a bit shy seeing that expression. Then she felt a silly smile appear on her face. "Yeah, I guess..." she said sheepishly. He smiled, obviously relieved. She had a feeling that he hadn't been in a lot of relationships, but she didn't dare say it. She did smile though, incredulously. All of this felt like a wonder to her, she could explain the strange fluttering feeling that filled her chest right now. Then she noticed she had been spacing out, and blinked. Then she looked next to her to see Nathan leaned back on the couch, his eyes almost closed. A spring breeze whirled into the room, and they both breathed in deeply at the same time.

She observed his face for a bit; observed his expressions. He looked completely relaxed for now, but she had seen him when he was thoughtful, or worried as well. Then she crept back on the couch and leaned against his shoulder carefully. He moved instinctively, moving his arm to fit around her shoulders. His hair tickled her face just a bit, and she smiled. He looked down at her with an amused expression. Then he closed his eyes and enjoyed the moment as long as he could.

**Chapter 12**

Caitlyn felt a bit anxious as she sneaked through the gate to the large mansion that was Nathan's, carefully avoiding the busy magicians that had crowded around. He had talked to new people who joined the Guild of Elementors, and people were hanging around in the hope to get a glimpse of the mysterious Elementor. She, however, being able to read his expressions a bit better, saw how tired he had looked after that last conference. His eyes weren't as sharp as they usually were, and she swore she almost saw him trip after he was done, and heading home.

She had been on errand for Sam, since he needed a new hat, and she was headed for town, when she saw the crowd of people in front of the Church of Saint Morning. She heard his voice after a few minutes, barely audible through the crowd, but certainly there. And then she thought about how busy he had been lately.  
'We barely get time to spend together...' she thought, feeling a bit of guilt after that thought. He was a busy person, and she had known that from the start. But it had been at least two months since they had properly talked to each other, without the rush and the stress of not being seen by the crowd.

"Nathan?" she asked hesitatingly, closing the wooden gate behind her. She moved to the terrace, a bit nervous when the grass under her feet was crushed with a slight sound.  
"Who's there?" she heard a tired voice say after about a minute. He sounded as if he had just been sleeping, and she heard some shuffling before the Elementor peeked out from behind the door, his eyes darker than they normally would be. His face lit up when he saw her though, and his expression set a flurry of butterflies loose in her chest. Smiling, she reached out to him, setting her bag down on the floor and stepping towards him. He caught her with a slight 'oomph', folding his arms around her and pulling her against his chest, burying his face in her hair. He smiled, closing his eyes.  
"Hi." he then simply said, looking at her blushing face with an amused look on his own.

"I saw you in Saint Morning today" she said with a smile, reaching around his neck, pulling him down slightly. He sighed, barely audible though.  
"It was... Tiring. Not that it wasn't needed." he admitted sheepishly. Caitlyn frowned.  
"And you look very tired..." she said quietly. He didn't even think about protesting, and nodded. "I am.. I'm sorry that I haven't been able to spend much time with you.." he said, a worried look on his features as his eyes turned to a soft brown, looking her in the eyes.  
"It's okay..." she said softly, a bit disoriented by his presence, as she usually was.  
"Is there anything you have to do today?" she then asked. He pondered, tapping his index finger to his chin thoughtfully.  
"Nothing that can't be postponed." he said with a small smile. "Okay... First of all, you should relax." she said with a grin. He rolled his eyes playfully. "Fine. How do I relax?" he asked her, smirking. She touched his cheek, blushing when he leaned into the gesture openly, closing his eyes just a bit. "I-I've got an idea." she stuttered, looking away shyly.

A few minutes later he lowered himself on a chair he conjured out from somewhere, with a gesture of his hand, and sat down on it, smiling slightly.  
"Ok. I want you to take your sweater off." she said, smiling slightly. He smirked (though she couldn't see it), and listened to her. She ran her fingers over his shoulders experimentally, though happy that she couldn't see his face right how, or him seeing hers.  
'Well, it was my idea to give him a shoulder-massage...' she thought, mentally face-palming for getting herself in such an awkward situation. She blushed when he leaned into her hands, just like a few minutes before when she touched his face, and called up some basic magic to relax him just a bit. Her fingers tingled with the magic, but even more when she ran them over his shoulders, reaching her powers down into his strained muscles, making them relax. Though she was busy, she couldn't help but admire his frame, smiling slightly thinking of how lucky they both had been to meet each other at that moment.

"Caitlyn..." he said a few minutes later, rather sleepily. She blinked, having been in somewhat of a trance for that whole time. "... Hm?" she asked, not trusting herself with saying anything more. He sighed, though he was smiling though he did so.  
"I can feel you staring. Just so you know." he said with a smirk, and a small blush.  
Her mouth opened in a perfect 'o', and she smiled awkwardly.  
"Well.. don't blame me.." she said quietly, not quite expecting him to hear it. A small smile curled her lips. Though, of course, he did, and he turned around slightly, looking at her face. Then he stood up from the chair, pulling her closer by cupping her cheek. She wasn't sure of what to say, because of his close proximity. Her mind seemed to be empty, yet again, and she smiled, an honest smile, because she felt very happy at that moment. He smiled as well, touching their smiles together, setting the butterflies that had almost stilled inside her body afly again.

She reached up almost instinctively, folding her arms around him again, brushing her hands over the soft fabric that was his black T-shirt, before slightly tugging on the fabric. Her eyes had closed a long time ago, and she focused on the strange sensations that flooded her once again (she hadn't been close to him in quite a while, and that made them strange sensations) because that was all she could do. He reached his hands up to her face, caressing her face with a soft yet firm grip, moving gently, as if he was handling a fragile being, moving to carefully deepen their embrace.

"..Nathan..." she mumbled when they moved apart for just a moment, their faces maybe just an inch apart. He stared into her eyes, his irises a brilliant blue that almost was too bright for her to take. Holding her breath, she forgot what she was about to say.

"... I love you." he whispered, smiling, no hesitation in his voice. She looked at him.  
Then a huge grin appeared on her face. "Me too." she said quietly, pulling him close once again.


	13. Inns And Magic

**Chapter 13**

Caitlyn wiped her hand over her forehead, huffing. Healing at higher levels was tiring, though she had expected it. She hadn't expected to be wobbling on her feet though.. Sighing shakily, she longed to be home again, with a warm drink and a sweater, lounging on the couch. Her mind wandered off, and she smiled dreamily, only to be awakened by a pair of fingers snapping in front of her eyes.

"Caity! We gotta hurry, we're almost there!" Colin shouted in her face, grinning wildly. She winced, her ears ringing from his loudness.

"Fine, fine.." she said, managing a small smile. She always appreciated his happiness. He saw the tiredness in her glance, and avoided the monsters' hits a bit more, trying to make her heal him a bit less. She noticed and smiled slightly. Behind her she could hear Sam shouting complicated spells, and she wondered if Nathan used those same spells when he was fighting.

The group of three arrived in Darkon town, rather exhausted, Caitlyn most of all. They decided to stay in an inn for now, and the two boys took a room together, and gave Caitlyn the second, a more spacious one. She was quite surprised at their generosity, and grinned, patting them both on the back.

"Thanks, guys!" she said, walking to her room, eager to get in the tub and relax. She closed the door behind her carefully, and threw off her jacket hastily, dropping the rest of her outerwear on the floor. Within minutes she sank away in the warm water, sighing happily. "Ahh~" she mused, letting her mind drift off.

She had seen Nathan on and off the last few weeks, but missed the times where training didn't keep them away from each other. The longer she didn't see him, the more he seemed like a dream, mature and handsome, a mysterious stranger, the way she had seen him at the beginning. Her fingers tingled; she wanted to touch his soft skin again and see his eyes glow softly... Blushing, she sighed. He always was busy...

After a while she dropped herself on her bed, dressed in comfy pajamas. She wondered what to do, and she decided to practice some of her healing skills in the meantime.  
The moment she closed her eyes and folded her hands, she felt a strong magical presence, extremely nearby, and gasped, opening her eyes to another world...

The world was tinted in gray scale, and all the sound seemed dulled somehow as she climbed off of her bed, feeling as if she was swimming under water. She stopped panicking though, when she noticed that she could breathe normally.. But there was another problem on hand. She had to get back somehow, how curious she was. She saw no visible solution though, so she walked over to the door, into the hallway that seemed longer and longer, the more she stared. A bit dizzy, she breathed in shakily, holding on to the wall.

There was a door open, a few doors further, and she could feel energy pulsating out from that room, striking her with a cold and hot sensation, her whole body tingling. Her eyes widened as she stepped into the doorway, staring straight into bright purple eyes, and the next moment she blacked out as the person called out her name.

_"-lyn! Caitlyn.._" a voice whispered, running warm hands over her skin. The warm voice was comforting, and distinctly familiar. Opening her eyes slowly, she reached out to the man who was speaking to her. Bright blue eyes stared into hers, and an exhausted, yet happy look appeared on his features.

"Nathan?" Caitlyn whispered, a feeling of anxiety suddenly taking hold of her. Her memory came back in lapses, and she gasped.  
"I'm so sorry!" she said, rather embarrassed. She heard his accelerated breathing calm down, heard him sigh.

"..It's okay.. As long as you are.." he said with a small smile, though she could see something else in his eyes. She sat up quickly, reaching out for him, folding her arms around his neck, wanting his comfort again. He made a surprised noise, but responded immediately, folding his arms around her waist, pulling her into his lap.

"You always get caught up when I use complicated spells.. I never meant for that to happen.. But how do you manage to do it?" he said and smirked when he saw her pout. "I don't know. Maybe you should practice your magic in safer places?" she said, grinning. He blushed, and she looked around her in the meantime.

"We're in your room, right?" she asked him quietly. He nodded curtly, his long bangs fringing into his face. She had an incredible urge to brush them out of his face to reveal his beautiful eyes again, ..and he smiled, eyes half-lidded as he folded his hand around hers and touched it to his face.

"It's nice to be with you again.. We've been busy, haven't we?" he said quietly. His eyes softened, turning brown as she looked into them.

"Mm.." she mused, biting her lower lip softly. "..yeah..". She lost her words as he smiled with a soft huff, running his long fingers through her hair, ticking the skin on her neck slightly. She shivered involuntarily, suddenly very aware that she was actually in his room, on the bed he had slept in, and when she breathed in she could recognize his scent everywhere, and she blushed furiously. He chuckled when he saw her face become red.

"What are you thinking of?" he asked. "Still worried about interrupting me?"  
She smirked. "Maybe." She said, leaning her forehead against his shoulder. He blinked, and smiled.  
"Are you here alone?" he asked her, pressing a kiss to her cheek. It took her a moment to respond. "..nope. Sam and Colin are a few rooms down, they gave me a room to my own." she said, breathing in shakily as he pressed his lips to a spot under her ear. "Hmm." he mused, and it resounded. Her hands trembled as she wanted to pull him closer, and it only took her a moment to give in, fingers locking in his dark hair. He made a soft sound, and ran his fingers over the side of her waist. Then he suddenly stopped, seemingly realizing something.

"Ah.." he mused, sitting up. His eyes shone. Caitlyn blushed as he lifted himself on his knees, turning her face up to his. His lips parted, just barely, and she had to notice, because the next moment, they were on hers, with a comfortable pressure that set a little fire in her chest aflame. She fought back a deep sigh as his hands cupped her face, just a little bit rougher. Her hands came up to tug him closer, and he parted his lips, deepening the kiss.

A moment later she found herself on her back, lips very busy, breaths coming in little gasps. "Ahh..." she whispered against his lips, her skin tingling as his hands tickled her sides.  
He groaned, pulling back for a moment, resting his forehead against hers. Light grey eyes peered into hers, half-lidded. ".. Nathan?" Caitlyn started, before his index finger was against her lips in an attempt to stop her from talking. She smiled slightly, seeing the slight blush on his cheeks. He looked different, embarrassed like that, and it made her want to tease him more by biting the finger he had on her lips. But he might be less amused by that, so she just smiled. He collapsed next to her, slowing his breathing.

"... Sorry." he said softly, running his fingers over her cheek. She frowned. What was he saying sorry for?  
"Why?" she asked him, turning to face him again. He looked a bit distressed that she didn't understand, and then he smiled. "Ah.. So I just might be thinking ahead again." he said, whispered, before capturing her lips again in a soft kiss, but didn't make it more than that.  
"Want to sleep over here?" he asked her, his breath warm on her lips.

"I don't think they- Sam and Colin- would notice if I did." she said, chuckling. "Okay." he said softly, cradling her to his chest, pulling the blanket up higher to keep them both warm.

"Tomorrow, I want you to train with me..." he whispered in her ear, brushing his nose against her cheek. She held her breath.  
"Really?" she asked him.

"Yeah." he whispered, his voice resounding in his chest. Breathing in his scent, she smiled, and once she heard his breathing slow, she felt herself drift away as well.

**Chapter 14**

"Hmm..." Caitlyn mused, feeling warm and comfortable as she drifted into consciousness. It only took her a few moments to remember the previous evening, and she smiled as she felt Nathan's arms tighten slightly around her, pressing her back closer to his chest. He mumbled something she couldn't quite hear, but smiled and pressed his lips to her hair. She started to drift away again, but suddenly remembered that Colin and Sam would be looking for her soon, and that they would figure out everything if they saw them like this?

'Calm down, they don't even know you're here!' she told herself over and over again, but couldn't stop her heartbeat from accelerating quickly, causing Nathan, with his heightened senses, to wake up and whisper her name. "What's wrong?" he asked sleepily, eyes swirling, struggling to choose the right color for his mood. "Err..." she started, a bit dizzy from the stress. "Sam and Colin could be looking for me..." she said quietly. He stayed quiet for a moment, and then sighed. "..I see what you mean. You don't want to worry them, right?" he mumbled, his voice just a tad solemn. She held her breath for a moment, expecting his arms to loosen, but they didn't, and she turned to face him, noticing the strange expression on his face.

"It's not really that... If they knew, other people might find out.." she said quietly, and her heart throbbed painfully when his expression became even more sad. "Nathan." she said.  
"Wouldn't it cause trouble if everyone knew about us?" she said, sitting up, her blond hair falling into her face, hiding her eyes from sight. He blinked.

"You think that?" he asked her, staring at her incredulously. She nodded, blushing slightly, feeling a bit silly. He sighed deeply, reaching for her again. He pulled her close and wrapped his blanket around her, smiling against her hair. "And I was thinking that you were embarrassed of me.." he said and sighed, leaning against her. "I don't know how people will react, but I don't really care either.." he mused. Caitlyn smiled slightly.

"Honestly?" she asked, running her fingers over the side of his neck. He felt like he was glowing again as he nodded. "..Thanks." she said, sighing in relief. He grinned, tightening his hold on her. "Honestly." he said, ignoring her embarrassed protests. His eyes glowed as he pressed a kiss to her forehead.  
"I hope you're not thinking more of those things" he whispered as he let her go, though reluctantly. She smiled. "At least not as of now." she said, and he groaned, letting himself fall backwards onto the bed. She looked down at him, how his chest moved with every breath he took, how his bright eyes observed her, how his dark hair sprawled across the white blankets.. And she blushed yet again, a strange feeling stirring in her chest.

"Stay still for a moment.." she mumbled, and his eyes narrowed, though he looked curious. "Now close your eyes?" she continued, moving to hover over him. He closed his eyes, and his lips curled into a small smile, hands twitching from wanting to touch her. She smiled, leaning down to kiss him, almost carefully. It took him just a moment to kiss her back, lips moving just slightly, while she sighed against his lips, smiling as she closed her eyes.

"Can I move now?" he asked, smiling slightly, though groaning softly when she deepened the kiss, almost painfully slowly. Shivering, though barely noticeable, his hands came up to root in her hair, while he tried to keep back the emotions that were tormenting him from inside; it was taking a lot of him to keep himself in control, and she knew it, smiling wickedly. Something in her really wanted to see another side of him, that side of him with blazing eyes, aflame with passion. She wondered if it even was possible for her to get him like that, though..

The very moment she felt his hands shake, and felt his movements become more uncontrolled, the moment she felt a warm rush and then a chill down her spine, three sharp raps on the door shook them out of their moment, freezing them in their movements. Nathan sat up quickly, bumping his forehead against hers. "Ouch!" she mumbled, turning in his lap. He looked alarmed, very alarmed, and she suddenly was reminded of the fact that no one knew about them. His eyes turned a dark brown, and he stood up.

"Who's there?" he called out with a clear voice, clean of any emotion. There was some mumbling on the other side of the door, before a male voice entered.  
"Are you the Guild Leader?" the voice continued, sounding rather strange. Caitlyn swallowed the lump in her throat; this sounded like someone who could harm him, at least that was what her intuition was telling her. Nathan let out a soft sigh.  
"You again? I thought that the others had taken care of you." he said, rather annoyed. '_Someone who wants to challenge me the whole time.._' he whispered to her. She nodded, eyes wide.  
"I have no interest in talking to you." he said, hands in his pockets as he walked over to the door so he could hear the muttering.  
"I'll just have to break open the door." the person said, sounding like he really meant it too. "I'll show you that there is someone who can beat you.". Nathan frowned slightly.  
"Try your best. But I'll not be here." Nathan said. He turned to Caitlyn and swept her up in his arms. "Think of your room." he whispered, closing his eyes. The strong magical presence amazed her once again, and she held on to him as she pictured her room as well as she could. There was a rush of wind, a storm of colors, and she found herself back in her room, on top of her bag, with Nathan sprawled on the bed next to her. He had a content smile on his face, and she smiled slightly.

"You have many people after you." she simply said, reaching out to touch his face. He didn't open his eyes but caught her hand in his, caressing the mouse of her hand softly. "Mmhm."  
"I've beat all of them, until now. But I don't have any interest in this person; he just keeps coming after me." he said, sighing, exasperated. Caitlyn patted his soft hair. "You'll have to set him straight someday though." she said carefully. "I know.. but I just want to enjoy nice things for now, not fight the whole time.." he mumbled. Smiling, Caitlyn stood up and hopped off the bed. "Don't go anywhere, I'm going to take a quick shower." she said.

Nathan nodded, and Caitlyn looked back once more at him as she entered the bathroom, feeling as if he would somehow disappear, like he had done before. She hoped, with her whole heart, that this time he wouldn't.  
She finished in just a few minutes, and she returned to a very panicked young Elementor, who was pacing around the room anxiously. Wide-eyed, she asked him what was wrong.  
"Nathan? Why are you pacing around like this?" she asked, stopping him by putting her hands on his shoulders. "Your friends." he said, pointing at the door. And when she focused, she could hear two voices faintly calling out her name. "They're planning to come get you to continue training, and they're coming here in a few minutes."  
"Oh.. That's true." she said, sighing. "I guess I'll see you later, then?" she said, sadly, as she reached up around his neck to hug him, and his arms circled around her waist to hold her close. She felt his heartbeat, and he smiled as he breathed in the scent of soap and shampoo. It was kind of nice.

"... Caitlyn?"  
A voice came from the door. "Ohh..." raced through her mind as she let the Elementor go, who stared at the dark-haired magician in the doorway with a confused expression on his face. "Is this...?" he asked, before an energetic Colin pushed him aside to barge into the room. "Caity?" he asked after a few moments of silence, regarding the majestic man next to her.

"Err..." she started, before her brain decided to short-circuit, and she passed out, barely caught up by Nathan, who was stared at by two pairs of eyes, and wondered how long it would take to explain this.


End file.
